2 Carb Pumpkin Latte

This is amazing... Make yourself Chai tea (lots of brands make this, I happen to enjoy Stash brand tea bags) Add about 1/4 teaspoon total of spices you enjoy like cinnamon, cloves or nutmeg I like using the "pumpkin pie spice" since everything is all blended. Add 2 tablespoons of liquid sugar free pumpkin spice creamer...international Delight brand I love Now mix, and enjoy... I could drink these all fall! And only 2 carbs! Bonus!

Italian Pizza Salad

I love to change up the salad bowl...

Greens, lettuce, romaine, or the salad you like

Pepperoni pieces

Olives, black or green

Shaved zucchini

Mozarella cheese chunks...the more the merrier

Grape tomatoes

Toss with oil and vinegar dressing

Pepperoni chips

Are you kidding, no...really worth a try.

Lay out pepperoni pieces on a paper towel on a paper plate and microwave for 3 minutes. They get crispy and mmmmm...so good

Use the pillow pack pepperoni like this...you could also try turkey pepperoni

Why I don't eat soy...

There is lots of research out there, but for me, I choose not to eat soy.  It contains estrogen like properties in your body and for anyone with a cancer risk or history, this can be dangerous.

I suggest this article

http://www.optimumchoices.com/Soy.htm

Salad greens...

Need to change up your salad?

Changing the greens is a great way. Consider a salad of

Iceberg, bib lettuce, mesculin greens, romaine, spinach

Now consider a salad with shredded cabbage or

Shredded zucchini

Salads are sometimes colored too, like purple cabbage or red endive

Try it all!

Grilled shrimp

Grilled shrimp are great and can be changed up with so many flavors...

I love marinating them in BBQ sauce, honey and hot sauce mixed together...yes, I know the BBQ and honey have carbs, but what you end up eating is minimal

How about mixing orange juice and fresh ginger and honey...equally yummy.

I also like eating cold grilled shrimp on salads!

Ranch Butter

Oh, the joys of butter. Here is something that will change your life.

Melt 2 or 3 sticks of butter.

Once it is melted, skim off the white film on the top. Take your time to get as much as you can off.

(You are making clarified butter)

Now add one dry package of ranch seasoning. Stir.

Use this to grill chicken, shrimp, steak, or put on top of veges.

Store the extra butter on the counter in a mason jar.

Oh, the joy!

Great kind of like ice cream substitute

When you realllllly want something cold and sweet, try this

Take a small amount of frozen fruit (yes, fruit has carbs, but use about 1/4 cup)

Use about 3 Tbsp of sweet creamer. I like the vanilla sugar free creamer.

Pour creamer over fruit and stir around. Now eat and enjoy.

I just had frozen blueberries...yeah, that's yummy!

Hard Boiled Eggs

Are your eggs gray around the yolk, or just not coming out right?

Try this cooking method.

Put eggs in a pot. Cover with cool tap water until the water is just above the egg.

Cook on medium until the water boils.

Then turn off the stove and remove from heat, cover, and do not peek...nothing will happen under there. Let eggs rest exactly 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes, drain water, add lots of ice cubes and cool water. Allow to cool and refrigerate!

Egg Salad

Love egg salad? Haven't made it in a while? Try it again.

Chop eggs well

Add mayo and mustard to taste

Add salt and pepper to taste

I like to add celery seed...strange, but it works.

Parmesan crisps

Want something crispy?

Make Parmesan crisps...

I use the shredded Parmesan, not the finely ground kind.

Make a mound of Parmesan pat it down on a silpat or parchment paper lined pan.

Bake in a 400 degree oven for 5 minutes. Allow to cool. If they are not crispy when cool, bake a little longer.

Low Carb Tacos

I love tacos, and without the taco shell they are quite tasty, here are some variations

Instead of the corn tortilla shell use...

Half a bell pepper

A lettuce leaf

Half an acorn squash

Use a smaller plate

This is the most SIMPLE concept in weight loss and health. Use a smaller plate with your meals. You will feel like you are eating more since it will appear as more on your plate.

Turkey Burger variation

Taco turkey Burger

Mix your turkey meat with dry taco seasoning.  Add taco sauce for moisture.  Turkey burgers have very little fat and moisture, so adding extra moisture is always helpful.  Grill your burger and top with your favorite "taco" toppings such as grated cheese, lettuce, tomatoes.

Add avocado and red onion to taste as well

Cheese steaks! Yes!

I love a good cheese steak, and it is a great low carb meal.

Sautee your veges ...onions, peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, summer squash...whatever you like,season to taste.

Now cook up your steak, top with cheese until it melts and serve on top of your sautéed veges.

Try this with different kinds of cheese !

Picture Inspiration

Sometimes I just need some inspiration...I head to Pinterest (Pinterest.com) and search "low carb". There's lots of inspiration to be had. Just click on at true you like for the recipe and more info!

String cheese and celery

Slice your string cheese long ways into 4 long slices, stuff your celery with string cheese for a protein snack on the go.

Turkey Burger Variations

Greek Salad Turkey Burger

Grill turkey burger

Top with Feta cheese, black olives and lettuce

Serve with a cucumber yogurt sauce for dipping

I love chips n dip

Low carb style....here it is

Dill pickle chips n dip.

Dill pickles are low calorie and low carb

Find your favorite dill pickles..dill pickle chips are little rounds of dill pickles in the jar.

Dry them on a paper towel and dig into your favorite dip...I like ranch dip with pickles. Yum!

Whey Protein Powder

Whey Protein Powder is a great source of protein and convenient to add to smoothies and to drink. There are lots of brands, just experiment with which one you like. I prefer vanilla flavor so it mixes in well with other flavors.  It is slightly sweet, so makes great smoothies. I suggest always using half of the scoop that is provided. You can always build up to more. Your gut might not be able to adjust to too much too fast. Start with a few times a week. This is available at regular pharmacy type stores like CVS and Walgreens, also Target and Walmart and online at Amazon. Buying it at a nutrition shop will be much more.

Turkey burger variations

Caprese Turkey Burger

Grill turkey burger

Top with fresh basil, tomato slice and mozarella cheese.

Colorful AND it tastes good!

Sugar Free Jello

Need something sweet?

Sugar Free jello might be right for you.

Personally the sweetener the use in sugar free jello makes my teeth very sensitive. You can read about this, it's really true tha it can affect some people like that, but if it doesn't bother you, go for it. And add 2 TBSP Cool Whip for 2 extra carbs.

What can I put in my salad?

Cucumbers and tomatoes not exciting anymore?

Try...

Cheese, cheddar, feta, Parmesan, goat cheese, blue cheese, mozarella

Bacon pieces, pepperoni, ham pieces, salami

Sunflower seeds, walnuts, almonds

Fresh herbs

Avacado

Grated citrus rind

Leeks, green onions, red onions

Snack bars...from Aldi

When a craving for something hits, these are a good snack, but never eat more than one a day. The sugar alcohols in them can wreak havoc on your gut. Trust me!

String Cheese sticks

String cheese sticks are great for the low carber. While the cost a little more, they are great to pack in a lunch, or grab from the fridge when you are starving. Try store brand ones too, never found a cheese stick I didn't like.

Smoothie blender

Here is the smoothie blender I use and highly recommend. It's a great convenient size and easy to get out and put away. Makes a perfect smoothie for one. Probably if I had to take out and use a full size blender, I probably wouldn't love smoothies so much. Available at Walmart, Target and Amazon...

Cottage Cheese

Saying that, people either love it or hate it. All I can say is...it's a great protein source.

One half cup is about 3 g carbs...depending on brand and 

16 g of protein...what does that mean?

Compare...one egg has about 6 g of protein...

My favorite brand is Friendship brand whipped.

Breakfast smoothie

You need to have protein in the morning, and I can only eat so many eggs.

I love a pumpkin smoothie in the morning

Plain yogurt (I use homemade)

Pumpkin purée from a can

Ice cubes

Sugar free vanilla creamer-liquid

Cinnamon and/or nutmeg to taste

Blend in a blender

I don't put in measurements because you will find the right proportions for your taste

Variations...I use whey protein powder, vanilla flavor, and switch from the sweet vanilla creamer to half and half or almond milk

Since the whey powder adds a sweet taste, you do not want to use both creamer and whey protein powder

Cows milk...ugh

Cows milk has 16 grams of carbs per cup,

Unsweetened almond milk has 1.4 carbs per cup

There are lots of brands. I like this one.

By the way, it does not taste "almondy"

Make sure to get the unsweetened.

Liquid creamer

Liquid creamers are a good low carb way to sweeten drinks. Just make sure to get the sugar free. Lots of brands and flavors are available. They are great in coffee, iced coffee and smoothies.

How to stay on track

Wear a special watch or bracelet. Every time you want to eat a less than desirable food, touch your watch and tell yourself "it's time for a change". No one will know you are carrying around a secret reminder.

Walnuts

Walnuts are an excellent source of omega3. Have a quarter cup of walnuts every day for great heart health, and they taste good too. You can put them in salads. Have them on celery with cream cheese then sprinkle with walnuts

Twenty five days ago I started a low carb lifestyle. I have lost 8.2 lbs so far and want to lose 30 more. I will be sharing recipes, ideas, thoughts, ups and downs. Blogging here is keeping it real!